Hmm, lets see. Brand new Kia Rio "fully equipped (LOL)" for $10K or a E39/E46 for the same price?? I don't know guys, really hard choice . The other day, I was driving by the Hyundai dealership in my town and I saw these people pulling out of the dealer lot test driving a Hyundai Elantra. What a waste. Now Hyundai has come a long way. The cars are getting better in quality and were probably the first ones to offer that long warranty. However, for the same price as that Elantra (maybe like $15K out the door?) give me either:
2001 740i sport
2002 325i 5MT
2001 540i/6
E34 M5
E36 M3
E28 M5
Super high mileage (but with service records) E39 M5
Case closed!

Chris: My Thoughts Exactly!! I just don't know why someone would drop $10-$15K on a new Kia, Hyundai, Suzuki, etc.... When you could buy any of the above mentioned. Ah, I guess some people just have to have that new car. But it is such a shame. In five years one of those Koran cars will be worth almost nothing, and yet the BMWs will still have value. Well I guess we would be in trouble if everyone would be a propeller head! Then these older BMWs would be much more expensive!

We all do need to give the OP thumbs up. He wants to drive a BMW. I wish he would chime in and let us know what he is driving now. However, I am happy that people pick up these new Korean cars. Why? Because then more BMW's will be available for us to snatch up!

Some chump just offered me 5k for the car. Apparently he thinks he can shave off 7k because the paint on the spoiler is starting to chip and because of a leaky water pump. I'd be willing to maybe take off a grand for that but not 7 thousand. I told him I've seen a rust bucket one of these go for 8k. Some people... About the OP, I hope he got a really nice Bimmer and is too busy driving it to post here.

Some chump just offered me 5k for the car. Apparently he thinks he can shave off 7k because the paint on the spoiler is starting to chip and because of a leaky water pump. I'd be willing to maybe take off a grand for that but not 7 thousand. I told him I've seen a rust bucket one of these go for 8k. Some people... .

Either he didn't know what he was looking at, or he was trying to take you for a ride. Some people is right. A few years ago I saw one with about 300K miles on it for $6K.

I kind of get bummed out when you guys talk about the E30 M3. It kind of makes me think "why oh why didn't I work harder and save more to buy one".

Problem is, even if I did, I'd be short over 10 grand on a car that's older than me. For 10 grand, I'd like to get a car that I can fix up to be completely fresh, like buying an E36 and changing all belts, pumps, fluids, whatever else I can think of and having a completely fresh car to start with. But then I look and see that the E36 isn't really all that special; people from all over have one and a lot of them have fallen into the "distastefully modded" crowd, making it harder to find one unmolested. It's like the Hondas; there are so many of them that people start to mod them and you can't find a decent stock one.

Then I think of my E30. I can count on ONE HAND how many E30's I've seen in the last month. This is good and bad news, good because it's a rare car (and I like that feeling of having something special), bad because it's harder to find them and they're getting really expensive, or at least the good ones are.

That is probably why I'd rather do an S52 conversion; it's a poor man's way of making a bottom of the line BMW into something more. I know that a standard stock M3 would cost twice as much as it would cost to make my M20 2.7 banger into something that resembles an M3 in some respect.

Problem is, I look at the M3 and say "it costs way too much for such an old car" and at the same time, I know what a special car it is and I would buy one in a heartbeat if I had the money for it. You can see why I'm so torn on this car; it's the car I want to own so badly, but I'm just too damned cheap to buy it.

This is exactly why I am soooooooo hoping this car lasts me another few years because I'm afraid to buy another car. I dread the moment I have to decide what I want to buy when this one expires because either I go for a newer, less special, more electronic, someone less expensive car, or I could go with an older, more problematic, much more special car that's a lot more rewarding. It's an unfortunate balance between cost and uniqueness, and I really don't want to make that decision.

The "group in the margins" are the folks who drive really truly great cars which are not that valuable.

Frankly, if I had a mint 2002tii or mint E30 M3 I would feel obligated to "preserve" it. My car -- a mint E30 convertible (Dinan chip, Eibach sway bars, Bilstein HDs) -- is special car, but yet one which I can drive without worries. Yeah, it would hurt really bad if I wrecked it, but the reality is I could get something equally fun. If I wrecked an M3 I would be filled with grief and obligation to fix the thing up again and it would never be the same. I would drive it more with a custodial mindset in the first place. It always amazes me at how few miles any Ferarri has on it.

I kind of get bummed out when you guys talk about the E30 M3. It kind of makes me think "why oh why didn't I work harder and save more to buy one".

Problem is, even if I did, I'd be short over 10 grand on a car that's older than me. For 10 grand, I'd like to get a car that I can fix up to be completely fresh, like buying an E36 and changing all belts, pumps, fluids, whatever else I can think of and having a completely fresh car to start with. But then I look and see that the E36 isn't really all that special; people from all over have one and a lot of them have fallen into the "distastefully modded" crowd, making it harder to find one unmolested. It's like the Hondas; there are so many of them that people start to mod them and you can't find a decent stock one.

Then I think of my E30. I can count on ONE HAND how many E30's I've seen in the last month. This is good and bad news, good because it's a rare car (and I like that feeling of having something special), bad because it's harder to find them and they're getting really expensive, or at least the good ones are.

That is probably why I'd rather do an S52 conversion; it's a poor man's way of making a bottom of the line BMW into something more. I know that a standard stock M3 would cost twice as much as it would cost to make my M20 2.7 banger into something that resembles an M3 in some respect.

Problem is, I look at the M3 and say "it costs way too much for such an old car" and at the same time, I know what a special car it is and I would buy one in a heartbeat if I had the money for it. You can see why I'm so torn on this car; it's the car I want to own so badly, but I'm just too damned cheap to buy it.

This is exactly why I am soooooooo hoping this car lasts me another few years because I'm afraid to buy another car. I dread the moment I have to decide what I want to buy when this one expires because either I go for a newer, less special, more electronic, someone less expensive car, or I could go with an older, more problematic, much more special car that's a lot more rewarding. It's an unfortunate balance between cost and uniqueness, and I really don't want to make that decision.

:cry:

AZ I am guessing here that you have an eta E30 right, a 325e or 325. Why don't you make it a 327i. Put a 325i head and cam on it. If you have an 88 you are half way there, I believe you just need the cam. I believe MooseheadM5 drives one of these beasts. I think you can get them to put out around 200 bhp. Then just invest in some springs and shocks and sway bars and you have yourself a self made Alpina/Hartge with out that expensive badge. It is not too hard to get any hard top E30 handling close to the M3. There are some differences you can't over come, but you can come close.

Maybe MooseheadM5 can give you some advice on this. Also the book BMW E30 - 3 Series Restoration Bible has info on this engine build as well. Here is a link to the book on Amazon.

Indeed off topic, but:
Pulled the head, intake, exhaust, wiring harness, and all EFI stuff from an 87 325i
Ported head, intake, exhaust manifold
Milled head 0.040" (yup)
Installed balancer from 88 super eta (critical)
Ran it to redline any chance I had. Over 60k and no problems.
Best to find a beat up 325i with a snapped belt for this mod

Probably cost me less than $500 including the snapped belt 325i (whole car.)
The best harness for an 86/87 325e is an 87 325i harness, because it plugs right in.
For an 88 you need a chip and the intake. The cam is not that different and is not really worth the effort.
The best diff is a 3.73, but for mileage a 3.25 or a 3.46 is great. I tow with mine and it has a 3.25 int it now. I am moving all the parts over to a 90 325i with a good body, so if anyone needs an 87 harness and an i head and intake, contact me.
Any other questions?

How much would it cost to have all that machining done? I don't know anyone who can do it for free, so I'd have to invest in it.

I'm sure it's a lot cheaper, but I'd probably have to rebuild as well if I went the 327i route. This engine's got a lot of mileage and it would blow if I did all this and needed a rebuild soon after that anyway. It might not need one, but I'd feel a lot more comfortable if I got it all done at once.

Also, what's cheaper, an engine swap or this 327i conversion? A shop that I'm in good standing with said they'd do a swap for about $400-600, but I don't think they know of what's involved with an S52 conversion (a lot more involving than an M20 to M20 swap), so their price might change. Also, I am unsure as to what kind of a job they do on swaps; that's an awfully cheap price so I'm a bit suspicious.

I have to admit though GR, the swap is an idea. 200hp should be enough for me to play with for a while, as opposed to the miniscule amount I've got now.

Paul, I will probably need all the other stuff as well. It's an 87, not a super eta unfortunately, and I've got a 2.93 LSD which I'm quite satisfied with, though it's leaking quite a bit...

Imagine if the OP went away for a while and came back and if he's got email notifications on, had his inbox full of off topic replies to his thread.

Standard machine shop resurface head and install valve guide seals is about $150 if you don't pull the cam. Cheaper if you rebuild the head yourself by pulling the cam and rocker shafts and lapping in the valves yourself. You don't have to machine the head, BTW, I just did that for more compression. Also, you don't have to port it (I did this all by hand myself.) My bottom end had about 200k on it when I did the 327i conversion, and was already worn. It didn't seem to care about the extra power forced through it. An M50 swap is much more expensive. If you are really interested, I actually have all the parts you need to do it on the shelf.

Those are some great videos! I really like the one where the crown vic can't keep up with the 2002!

The last is great, that is just a great clip of BMW and what they stand for. It should be required that the current C suits at BMW watch that ever week! Just to make sure they don't forget where BMW came from!